The Space Between
by RoseSchmidt
Summary: When Kendall falls ill just before Big Time Rush's Worldwide Summer Tour; he is rushed to the hospital and kept under heavy observation. The one thing, however, that makes his time there worthwhile is his doctor, Dr. Jo Taylor. But what will happen when their lives lead them in opposite directions? Eventual JENDALL
1. Chapter 1

James was the first to run off the stage, he was greeted in the wings by one of the stage assistants holding bottles of water. He took one and skulled it down greedily. He heard the other boys behind him, and saw Logan and Carlos repeat his actions and gulp down their water. James turned around, and saw Kendall standing a few feet behind him, breathing heavily and shakily.

"Hey, are you okay man?" James asked, walking up and holding out the rest of his water to Kendall. He raised his head groggily, his eyes lazily shifting from the bottle to James. He remained silent for a moment, and then finally managing to mutter a response.

"Yeah. I'm fine." He said as he turned around and sauntered off to his dressing room.

James couldn't help but stare after his dazed friend, unsure of whether he should be worried or not. He decided it was nothing and went back to his other band mates, who were eagerly chatting to one of the sound technicians. He just managed to enter the conversation when he heard shouting behind him. They all ran to the source of the anxious yell and saw Kendall sprawled out on the floor, unconscious. Carlos was the first of the boys to react.

"Kendall!" He screamed, hurrying to the boy's side, desperately trying to wake him up – despite Kendall being completely unresponsive. Logan ran off to find a paramedic or a security guard. And James just stood there, overwhelmed by all the things around him. He was lost amongst all his thoughts, which had all come to him so suddenly it felt like his brain had just flooded. He was the oldest; he was supposed to be the responsible one. He should be helping, contributing in some way. But instead he stood there, motionless, completely useless as he watched one of his best friends laying on the floor, while the others desperately tried to help him.

He watched on in horror as a medic pushed past him and dropped next to Kendall, and then digging through his equipment bag. He pulled out a stethoscope and shoved it in his ears, placing the end of it on Kendall's chest. He called out something to the stage manager, who was yelling at someone on the phone. Logan was running between the unconscious boy and the stage manager, nervously yelling out things that James couldn't make out. Carlos was holding Kendall's hand, looking at him with a terrified expression.

James couldn't hear anything; despite seeing everyone's mouths moving frantically. He felt like he was in a vacuum, and all the air had been sucked from the room. His throat felt dry and he tried to get someone's attention, to ask what was happening to his best friend – but he couldn't. His vocal chords had been severed; all the nerves in his body had died. He could do nothing but stand there and attempt to take it all in.

Carlos climbed into the back of the ambulance, trying not to cry. He watched as the lifted the stretcher in after him, Kendall's body jerking roughly as they hoisted it up. Carlos watched as one of the paramedics skillfully inserted a needle into Kendall's forearm and connected it to an IV drip.

Carlos breathed in sharply as he saw the needle pierce Kendall's skin, anticipating a reaction from Kendall – but Kendall remained stagnant. "Kendall? Kendall – can you hear me?" Carlos stuttered, gently nudging Kendall's broad, stiff shoulders.

"Why isn't he moving? Why won't he answer me?" Carlos cried, looking up at the paramedics desperately.

The two paramedics exchanged glances and the older one looked at Carlos with concern. "He's unconscious at the moment, so he's unresponsive. We aren't sure why he collapsed but when we get him to the hospital the doctors will run some tests and hopefully figure out the cause." Carlos remained quiet, his head hanging meekly.

"Okay." Carlos whispered to him.

The medic sighed and put his arm around Carlos' shoulders, "I'm sure he'll be fine. It's probably just dehydration or exhaustion. If that is the case, he should be out of the hospital in a couple of days."

Carlos smiled weakly, "Thanks." He carefully wrapped his hand around Kendall's limp one, squeezing it slightly. For the rest of the trip, he just sat there, whispering to Kendall, desperately hoping that the paramedic was right, and it was nothing serious. But Carlos couldn't get over this feeling deep in him that something was really wrong with Kendall. And if this was true, all four of them would never be the same again.

Logan gripped the steering wheel tightly, anxiously glancing at his navigation system, checking how long it would take for them to get hospital every minute in the hope of it suddenly dropping.

"Logan, slow down." James said quietly from the passenger's seat.

Logan kept at a constant speed, ignoring James's request completely.

"Logan." James asserted, his voice firm, "I said _slow down_"

The car approached an intersection, with an orange traffic light. The light just turned red as they made it to the junction. Logan pressed his foot down harder on the acceleration, and the engine roared as the car flew forward into the oncoming traffic. James instinctively lurched forwards, trying to stop the car. But Logan held firm, refusing to give in. Cars around them honked as they put their brakes on and tried to swerve away, the tires squealing on the bitumen. The small sports car narrowly avoided colliding with a large, black SUV.

Somehow, the car emerged from the intersection unscathed, and Logan lightened his foot on the pedal slightly, going back to the speed limit.

He heard James hyperventilating next to him, trying to regain his composure.

"Jesus Christ, Logan – what are you doing?" James asked incredulously. Logan didn't even look at him, instead holding his eyes held firmly ahead.

"Logan. Logan, pull over. Right now." Logan did as he was told and pulled into the side of the street. He turned the keys and closed his eyes, leaning back into the leather seat.

"Logan." James began, "I know you're scared and anxious and upset, and I am too - but the last thing we need right now is to get into a car accident and have us in hospital as well."

Logan nodded curtly, still avoiding eye contact.

"How about I drive the rest of the way? You look like you need a rest."

Logan didn't reply, instead he opened the door and climbed out, walking around to the other side.

"Well. I'll take that as a yes." James muttered to himself as he got out and went to the driver's side. He got in and hastily did up his seatbelt.

The rest of the drive was in complete silence, with Logan leaning his head against the window with his eyes shut and James focusing on driving. When they finally pulled up into to parking lot of the Emergency Room, Logan bolted out, running up to the doors and leaving James alone in the car.

Logan knew he was being unfair, and James had done absolutely nothing wrong, but he couldn't help but be angry with everyone. Kendall was sick and they didn't know why. It could be anything from a bad cold to cancer. Logan just couldn't handle it, he couldn't handle not knowing what would happen to Kendall. It was the uncertainty of it all that upset him most.

He ran up to the front desk, where a young-looking nurse was sitting. "I need to see Kendall Knight." He demanded urgently.

The nurse quickly tapped something into her computer, and stood up. "He's in room 418. Just go down the hall to the elevators, go up to the 4th floor and follow the signs." She said calmly, gesturing down towards the elevators. Logan nodded and quickly thanked her, before sprinting down to the elevator and pushing the button furiously. The lift doors finally opened and he went in, with James following him. They waited in silence as the elevator slowly climbed up floor-by-floor. When they reached the 4th floor and the elevator doors spread, they both walked briskly towards the big sign directory, trying to find Kendall's room.

James pointed to the bottom of the sign, which read ROOMS 410-420 with an arrow pointing left. They set off in that direction, checking every room number anxiously. They turned a corner and saw Carlos sitting on one of the chairs lining the hall, his legs held up to his chest with his head buried in his knees.

"Carlos" Logan called. His head snapped up at the sound of his name. He smiled tightly when he saw his best friends walking towards him. He jumped out of the seat and ran over to them. James was the first to meet him, and pulled him into a hug. Carlos' resolve completely crumbled in James's arms, and he broke down. His head laying limply on James's shoulders, crying into his shirt. Logan walked past them, into Kendall's room.

He gasped when he entered the room, seeing it's contents. Kendall was lying in the hospital bed, completely still. His eyes were closed and his face expressionless and pale, lacking it's usual spark. His hair was dirty looking, matted with sweat and hanging limply. He was wearing a thin, papery hospital gown, which looked stiff and scratchy. Kendall was usually the loud one, the one who was always so full of energy. And now he looked dead, or at least close to it. Logan began to cry, he had been holding it in this whole time – not wanting to look weak, but seeing Kendall in this state just pushed him over the edge.

"Kendall." He whispered, his voice shaky. He pulled over the armchair from the corner of the room to Kendall's bedside. He lowered himself down into the chair and lay his head down on the side of the bed. He heard voices outside and recognized James and Carlos', as well as an unfamiliar one. Logan tried to hear what was happening, but couldn't focus. With all the thoughts racing through his mind, he could feel himself wearing down. He finally gave in to his fatigue and fell asleep, his hand still clasped around Kendall's.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you everyone for reviewing, favouriting, following etc. etc. I do reply to every review, so I do really read them and appreciate them.**

**RomioneAlways51- You are such a legend! I do not understand how you can put up with reading all my stories – seeing as I am totally hopeless at updating them. But thanks so much! I really hope you like it**

**BigTimeGinger – Well you will find out. Seeing as I accidentally told you the ending like 5 minutes ago exoh**

**Chey21 – Thank you!**

**Xxkamqxx – Thank you – I am on holidays right now so hopefully I will update somewhat more often**

**SuperNeos2 – I know right! I almost feel bad writing this because I love him so much**

**BTRhpgeek21 – Thank you so much! That is such a nice review – I love you! I was hoping the reactions were all somewhat realistic (I made Logan take it the hardest because I am ship Kogan so much it hurts) But thank you so much! That really does mean a lot to me**

**Paulag.2011 – Well you will sort of find out in this chapter (remember – it isn't definite though!) Hope you like it.**

**Anywhom, enjoy the chapter! Tell me what you think**

Kendall tried to open his eyes but it felt like they had been cemented shut. He groggily shifted in what he thought was his bed, but felt the cold steel railings on either side of the mattress and the thin cotton blanket replacing his usual thick duvet. He lifted his hands and brought them to his face, rubbing at his eyes sleepily. He pushed himself up into a sitting position and finally managed to open his eyes.

The first thing he took in was the whiteness of the room. The floor was white, the walls were white, the bed was white; he felt like he was in a dream. He looked down and saw a tube coming from the back of his hand, the transparent tube was connected to a plastic bag hanging up on a stand next to his bed. The bag had a clear liquid in it and a label with some tiny writing on it. Kendall tried to read it, but trying focus his eyes just caused a sharp pain in his head. He groaned in pain as his eyesight went blurry and his head started to throb.

"You okay?" Kendall heard a woman's voice call from the doorway. He tried to see the person the voice came from but all he could make out was a pale pink blur.

"I've been better" He mumbled. The woman laughed slightly and walked over to his bed.

Kendall's vision started to clear up and he was able to get a good look at the nurse. The first thing he saw was her hair, which was pulled up into a ponytail – it was jet black with bright red streaks through it. She looked like she was of mixed race, but he couldn't quite tell what – maybe just a dash of everything; Caucasian, Cherokee, Asian. She had dark eyes and flawless, golden skin. She was smiling down at Kendall and she looked absolutely beautiful.

"Are you an angel?" He asked.

She giggled, "I think those painkillers are working." Kendall chuckled. "But no – I'm a nurse. My name's Lucy."

"I'm Kendall."

"Oh I know, you're Kendall Knight. I also know that you are 21, 5'11" and 160lb. You are in a band called Big Time Rush. You have no history of heart condition or any other major health issues. You collapsed last night and were in a minor coma for 4 hours."

Kendall stared at Lucy, speechless.

Lucy just laughed again, "I had to read your file."

"Oh.' Kendall said, relieved. "And I thought you were just some obsessed fan posing as a nurse."

Lucy shook her head, smiling. "No, but there are some crazy fangirls in the lobby. But don't worry – we're making sure they can't get up here and disturb your _healing process._"

Kendall laughed, "Thank you. Usually I'm more than happy to sign autographs and pose for photos, but honestly; right now I can barely keep my head up let alone handle that. And was I really in a coma for 4 hours?"

Lucy nodded, "Yep. Your friends were pretty worried. They are all in the waiting room down the hall. And your mother was called and she's flying out as we speak. Actually, she should be here in a couple of hours so you should probably rest up before then. Your doctor will be here in a couple of minutes and if you need anything just push this button and I'll come."

"Thanks." Kendall said, as she turned away and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

Kendall looked at his bedside table and saw a remote control for the television mounted on the furthermost wall. He turned it on and began flicking through channels.

Sport. News. Cartoons. More sport.

Kendall sighed in exasperation and finally decided on the cartoons. It was Pinky and The Brain, one of his old favourites. He just started to get into it when the door opened and in walked a gorgeous young woman.

She seemed Kendall's age, with blonde hair that was loosely curled, and thick eyeliner that made her dark brown eyes look even more sultry. She wore a tight-fitting, black dress that showed a bit of skin, but still made her looks classy. Her shoes were quite high, and looked difficult to walk in but she still waltzed over to his bed easily, as if she were barefoot. She was carrying a white coat, a clipboard and a small black purse, which she lay down on the table at the foot of Kendall's bed.

"I'm sorry – you must have the wrong room." Kendall began, assuming the girl was here to visit someone.

"Oh, no. I'm Dr. Taylor." She explained.

Kendall stared up at her incredulously. Surely this woman couldn't be a doctor. She seemed so young and beautiful – not at all like the stereotypical old male doctor image he had in his head.

"I'm so sorry about the outfit – I was out for a friend's birthday and I got called in on an emergency. I didn't have time to grab a change of clothes." She explained as she pulled on the white medical coat, making her change instantly from party girl to doctor. "But don't worry – I wasn't drinking! I am 100% sober"

Kendall smiled at her, "It's fine. I'm sorry you had to get called in on a Saturday night."

Dr. Taylor laughed, "I guess it's just part of the job. I'm working for 80 hours a week, and on-call for another 30."

"God, that sounds even worse than my schedule." Kendall joked, "You must have no social life."

The second Kendall said it he realized how insulting it sounded, it was if the filter in his brain that monitored what he said had been completely shut off by the painkillers.

"Oh no. I didn't mean it like that – you probably have a great social life and heaps of friends. I just meant surely you're really busy. With being a doctor." Kendall could feel himself getting overwhelmed, this always happened around pretty girls.

She just laughed, amused at Kendall desperately trying to correct himself. "I know what you mean, don't worry, and I suppose it is difficult to have a social life and this job. But it's worth it. Definitely worth it."

Kendall nodded, "It must be."

Dr. Taylor looked down at her clipboard. "So, Mr. Knight. How long have you been awake?"

"Maybe half an hour?" He answered.

"Has there been anything wrong in the past couple of days?"

Kendall nodded, "I've been getting really bad headaches, sometimes they were so bad I would throw up after them."

She seemed unfazed, "Alright. And how have you been feeling? Any nausea, dizziness, migraines?"

"I think I had a migraine when I first woke up. But other than that I'm feeling fine – just a little tired and sore."

She nodded, "That is completely normal, nothing to worry about. Are you hungry? I can get the nurse to get you some food?"

The mention of food made Kendall realize just how hungry he was. "Actually – that sounds great."

"Sure – no dietary requirements?" She asked.

"None." There was a long pause while she scribbled something down onto her clipboard. "Dr. Taylor?"

"Call me Jo." She said, looking up from Kendall's chart.

Kendall smiled to himself. _Jo Taylor_. The name suited her. It was pretty, but without being too girly. Cute – but still mature enough for a doctor.

"Jo. Do you have any idea what's wrong with me?" Kendall asked, finally facing the question he had been trying to avoid.

Jo looked up at Kendall and sighed. "There are a few things I suspect but I'm not 100% sure yet."

She paused, and then went back to her clipboard.

"Well…?" Kendall pressed.

"Well what?" She asked indignantly.

"What do you think it is?" Kendall replied, frustrated.

"I don't want to say – it's unprofessional of me to just guess things. We should wait until there's something concrete." She began to ramble.

"Jo!" Kendall yelled, interrupting her. "Just tell me."

"I think it's a brain hemorrhage." Jo blurted out.

Kendall stopped, his arms felt heavy and his chest felt like it was being crushed. "What?"

"It might be something else, but you have all the symptoms. The headaches, the vomiting, the coma. Everything. It's not an official diagnosis – I mean we would have to run tests before we knew whether that's what it is. It could just be exhaustion or some sort of immune-deficiency. And even if, worst-case scenario, I am right then it would also depend on how bad it is. Some brain hemorrhages are tiny and don't have any long-term effects."

"What if it's bad?" Kendall asked, avoiding looking Jo directly in the eyes.

Jo shook her head, looking down at the linoleum floor.

"I said, what if it's bad?" Kendall asked again, his voice hard and emotionless.

"Then you could die." Jo said bluntly.

Kendall slumped back into the bed, covering his face in his hands.

_Come on Knight. Get it together. Don't cry, not in front of her._

He heard soft footsteps and felt Jo place her hand on his shoulder. "The odds of that happening are so tiny, Kendall. You're going to be fine."

Jo's comforting words had the opposite effect on Kendall, and he broke down. He cried into his hands, quietly sobbing. He was only 21, he shouldn't have to worry about death. He should be out clubbing, hooking up with random girls, living life while he was young. But instead, he was here; lying in a bleak hospital room, crying on his Doctor's shoulder. At any other given time, he would think of some ploy to get her to like him, she _was_ one of the most gorgeous girls Kendall had ever seen. But given the current situation, getting laid was the furthest thing from his mind.

Jo stroked his hair, whispering to him in an effort to calm him down. "You'll be okay Kendall, I know it."

"And if I'm not? If it's something serious?" Kendall asked, managing to compose himself.

"Then we'll deal with that as it comes. Let's just take this play-by-play. What we know right now is that you passed out. That's it. You just get some sleep tonight, and tomorrow I will organize some tests."

Jo gave Kendall one last hug and got up silently, walking over to the door. She opened the heavy door when she heard Kendall's voice from behind her.

"Jo?" He called softly.

She turned around and saw him, sitting up in the bed looking at her.

"Thank you so much. For being so sweet."

Jo smiled back at him. "Anytime. Now get some sleep and I'll be back to see you tomorrow morning.

She shut the door and Kendall heard the sound of her high heels travel down the hall. They eventually disappeared, blending in with the sounds of the rest of the hospital. Instead, Kendall focused on the steadily-paced beep of his heart rate monitor as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

He couldn't quite tell how he felt about what the next day would bring, it would either rule out the possibility of a brain hemorrhage or cement everything he was fearing.


	3. Chapter 3

**I would just like to begin by saying – I have no medical knowledge whatsoever so please don't take any medical things I write seriously. For all I know, Wikipedia could've been totally lying to me. And I also know that it is unlikely for a doctor to be so young but oh well, this is fiction so it doesn't matter. BUT ANYWAYS – enjoy the chapter, please review etc. etc.**

**BigTimeGinger - #cheerskent**

**Osnapitzriri – thank you! That's so lovely, I wanted her to comfort him but I was trying not to make it seem really 'we only met 5 minutes ago but now we're really close', you know? But thanks!**

**Winterschild11 – Thank you very much! Hope you enjoy the rest**

**BTRhpgeek21 – sjhdjkh thank you so much! Your reviews are just too nice, and I have some weird Kogan obsession, it is the most perfect coupling ever. Thank you so much!**

**RomioneAlways51 – Thank you! And I always end up putting up like 4 chapters then getting bored and giving up, but I promise I will try to stick with this one. And I am about 75% sure Kendall won't die, I don't think I would be able to write that!**

**JanuarySummers – Thank you so much! That is such a nice review! Jendall is amazing, I ship it…hard. Thank you though – and for some reason I can't make myself like Lucy, I try but I just can't – so I'm trying to make her nice in this because I want to like her, if that makes any sense? But thank you!**

**IfYouRuledTheWorld – I know! I feel terrible writing about Kendall being sick. Thank you! I will try to write this chapter quickly.**

**SuperNeos2 – Thank you! I really don't want to kill him off. And you are such a legend - I swear you review like all my stories, thank you so much!**

**Chey21 – Thank you! I really hope you like this chapter then!**

**Jackie Grey – I know right! This story is making me sad just to write. I don't think I will kill him, if it's any consolation!**

**TheWritingFreak – Thank you! And I love Jendall and Kogan so much, like they are amazing. I will try to keep updating but I am like the laziest person ever!**

**Thanks to everyone and please review this chapter! Enjoy!**

Kendall's Mom, Jennifer, stood outside Kendall's hospital room, talking to Dr. Taylor.

"Is he going to be okay? What's wrong with him? When can he come home?" She asked desperately, tears welling in her eyes.

"It's too soon to tell, there are still a range of things it could be. We just sent off a blood test to see if it's a vascular disorder, and we will be having some more intense tests in a couple of hours."

"Intense tests? What does that mean?"

"Well I've booked him in for an MRI and a CT scan, and if those both come back normal then we may have to resort to more invasive forms of testing."

"Such as…?"

"Bone marrow tests, biopsies, a few others."

Jennifer paused, looking at the floor, trying to think clearly. All of this information was so overwhelming, Kendall was her baby boy and here he was – in a hospital with some mystery illness.

"Why do you need to do so many tests? Can't you just do one generalized one and be done with it?" She reasoned.

"Well it's difficult because we don't know what we're looking for. It could be a problem with his blood, brain, heart, lungs. Anything." Jo explained.

"Well what do you think it is?" Jennifer questioned.

Jo sighed, she hated telling patients information that she hadn't validated yet but she felt like she had to, Jennifer just looked so hopeless, defeated almost.

"Well I _think_ it's a cerebral hemorrhage, which is when, for some reason, there is bleeding within the brain. I have no idea how severe it is, it might fix itself or it might lead to swelling and need surgery."

Jennifer took a deep breath, trying her best to remain calm. "Okay. How long until you know what it is?"

"If it is a hemorrhage or anything similar, then the MRI should give us a lot more information."

"Can I see him?"

Jo paused, looking through the small glass panel in the door and into Kendall's room, where he was sleeping.

"I don't see any problem with that. Just try not to overwhelm him, he's already pretty worried, I think right now he just needs some company, some support."

Jennifer nodded, "Would I be able to bring the others in?"

"Who are _the others_ exactly?" Jo asked.

"His little sister and his 3 best friends."

"Maybe just go in with his sister and then I will send in his friends when your finished. He's pretty tired so I think just small groups of people would be best."

Jennifer smiled, "Thank you, I'll just go get her." She turned around and walked over to the floor's waiting area. She came back with a girl, maybe 13 or 14 years old. She looked like Kendall, with the same wide smile and big eyes – except hers were light brown opposed to Kendall's bright green, and she had long, straight brown hair. On any other day she would've seemed like a complete normal, happy kid – but her face held a look of devastation, her eyes red from crying and her hair a tangled mess.

Jennifer gave Jo a small nod and walked into the room, but Katie stopped and looked up at Jo, "Is he going to be okay?" She whispered, her voice small and weak.

Jo tried to smile but ended up giving off what seemed like an awkward grimace, unable to make herself smile. "I think so." She replied, quietly.

Katie nodded solemnly and then followed her mother into the room.

"Hey Kenny" Jennifer said, leaning down and brushing his hair out of his eyes.

Kendall opened his eyes slowly, trying to adjust to the bright fluorescent lights. He saw his mother leaning over the bed and smiled, "Hi Mom." He said drowsily.

She smiled tightly; trying to put on a happy façade so her son wouldn't see just how scared she was. Fortunately, he didn't realize and smiled back genuinely.

"Kendall!" He turned around and saw Katie on his other side, stretching over the bed frame to give him a hug.

"Hey Katie-Kat" He laughed, wrapping his arms around her. "How are you?"

Katie felt all her fears disappear when she saw Kendall, still his lively self. She had been expecting him to be a shell of his former-self, but he was just the same. His eyes still bright and expressive, a smile permanently plastered on that stupid face of his. She chuckled, "I'm going alright. What about you?"

"Well I've been better" He joked, ruffling her hair.

"Hey!" She scolded, flinching back and fixing her hair. "Just because you're in hospital doesn't mean I won't punch you if you touch my hair."

Kendall laughed, putting up his hands in front of him; feigning surrender. "Okay, okay – I'll stop."

Katie tried to act indignant, but it was useless. Kendall could always see right through her. He heaved her up onto the bed and hugged her again, "I've missed you so much! It's been weeks since I've seen you."

Katie tried to squirm out of his grip, but to no avail; his arms holding her like a vice. She tried to act like the mature 14 year old she was, but when she was Kendall she always found herself turning back into 9 year old Katie, constantly giggling and playing around with her big brother. It didn't matter if she was 14 or 24, Kendall was always going to see her as his baby sister – and treat her accordingly.

Jennifer watched her two children, playing around on Kendall's hospital bed. She was relieved to see that Kendall was acting the same. But, then again, he _was_ the type of guy who would never let anyone else know when something was wrong. That's probably why he was here, because he had noticed something wrong, but had kept it to himself until it got so bad that he passed out. Once, when he was 10, Kendall had fallen and badly hurt his arm while playing ice hockey, but he insisted it was nothing and refused to go to a doctor. By the time she had finally made him go, she found out he had had a broken arm for days, and done nothing about it. He had still been going to school, playing with his friends, everything he did usually. The doctor had been astonished at how he had battled through the pain, which he had said would have been intense. When the doctor had asked Kendall why he hadn't come sooner, Kendall replied – "I didn't want to let everyone down."

At the time Jennifer had been totally confused by this, but when Kendall grew into a teenager, and eventually a young man, she had realized that that's just how Kendall is. He never wanted to show any weakness, he always had to be the big man, the leader of the group.

Jennifer sat back and watched her children for a few more minutes, trying to fight off the realization that her son may be dying.

"Hey, Mom?" Kendall asked.

"Yes" She answered automatically.

"Are the guys here? Can I see them?" His face was so hopeful, like seeing his best friends was all he really cared about in that moment.

"Sure. Katie, let's go back to the waiting room and send the boys in."

Katie nodded happily, and got down off his bed. Jennifer took her by the hand and lead her out of the room. She looked over her shoulder at Kendall, who was sitting up in his bed, watching them. "We'll be back soon sweetheart. I love you." She said, trying to sound normal and not like the nervous wreck she was inside.

"Sure – love you too." He replied.

Jennifer and Katie walked down the corridor silently, the only noise that could be heard was the clacking on her heels against the linoleum. They reached the cluster of seats were James, Logan and Carlos were all waiting patiently.

"How is he?" Logan asked immediately after he saw them, leaping up from his seat.

"He seems fine, he's asking for you." She said, looking down at the other two, who were still seated.

Carlos nodded, it was the most serious Jennifer had ever seen him look in the 15 years she had known him. He stood up, with James following a few moments later. The boys all smiled at her and Katie as they walked by, desperate to see their friend.

Katie watched them all walk away until they were out of her view. She looked back to her Mom, who had slumped into one of the seats, eyes watering. She quietly walked over and sat down next to her, and held her hand.

"It's going to be okay, Mom" She whispered. "Kendall's going to be okay."


End file.
